JUSTICE Scotland responded to the Post Corroboration Safeguards Review, the latest in a series of consultations regarding reform of the criminal justice system, this one with respect to necessary safeguards should the corroboration rule be abolished. Downloads JUSTICE Scotland Response to the Post Corroboration Safeguards Review– December, 2014
Courts Reform (Scotland) Bill
March 16, 2014
The wider proposed reforms in the Bill will lead to a significant amount of additional business for the Sheriff Court. We are concerned that the Sheriff Court may not have the capacity to cope with the likely volume of cases that will result not just from these reforms, but from the implementation of the court […]
Courts Reform (Scotland) Bill
March 10, 2014
The Courts Reform (Scotland) Bill will introduce important procedural limitations to the process of judicial review in Scotland. Judicial review allows individual citizens to seek a remedy for the unlawful conduct of public authorities and decision makers. In a country without a written constitution which governs the relationship between the individual and the State, its […]
Scottish Government Consultation on Civil Appeals from the Court of Session
September 11, 2013
JUSTICE responded to the Scottish Government consultation on the proposal to introduce a leave requirement for Scottish cases to proceed to the Supreme Court. Currently no equivalent requirement for leave applies to that applicable in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Instead, appeals must be certified by counsel before being referred. JUSTICE expressed our support for […]
Making Justice Work: Courts Reform (Scotland) Bill
June 11, 2013
The Making Justice Work: Courts Reform (Scotland) Bill Consultation ran from February to May 2013. It contained proposals to restructure the way civil cases and summary criminal cases are dealt with by the courts in Scotland. The proposals suggest a legal framework for implementing the majority of recommendations of the Scottish Civil Courts Review. The […]
Scotland Bill
January 8, 2012
Following agreement of both Houses on the text of this Bill it achieved Royal Assent on 1 May 2012. The Bill is now an Act of Parliament. The Bill will implement recommendations of the Final Report of the Commission on Scottish Devolution (the Calman Commission). It would make a number of adjustments to the boundary […]
Reforming Scots Criminal Law and Practice
December 18, 2011
The Scottish government set up a review of criminal justice following the decision in Cadder v HMA in October 2010, which held that suspects detained in police custody should be afforded access to legal advice and assistance, otherwise use of interview evidence in the course of a prosecution could breach their right to a fair […]
The Supreme Court Review
August 10, 2011
The Scottish Government has set up a review group chaired by Lord McCluskey to consider what ongoing role the UK Supreme Court should have in considering criminal cases under its devolution jurisdiction. JUSTICE and its Scottish Advisory Group have responded to the consultation. Downloads JUSTICE response to Supreme Court Review– August, 2011
Criminal Procedure (Legal Assistance, Detention and Appeals) (Scotland) Bill
November 11, 2010
This bill was presented as emergency legislation in response to the Cadder judgment handed down on 26 October 2010 by the UK Supreme Court. The legislation came into force as the Criminal Procedure (Legal Assistance, Detention and Appeals) (Scotland) Act 2010 on 29 October 2010. The Act made significant amendments to the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) […]